Monday, June 29, 2009

New laws take effect on July 1

VietNamNet Bridge – On July 1, 2009, many significant new laws and regulations will go into effect. These include the Law on Vietnamese Nationality, the Law on Enforcement of Civil Verdicts, the Law on Health Insurance, the revised Law on Road Traffic, the Hi-tech Law, the Law on Biodiversity and the Ordinance on Legal Costs and Court Fees. According to the revised Law on Road Traffic, all motorbike, motor-bicycle riders have to wear helmet.

Law on Vietnamese Nationality

The law has many new, open articles on overseas Vietnamese. The law continues to confirm the rule of one nationality. However, in some exceptional cases, one can have another nationality.

Exceptional cases are those who have foreign nationality but have the permission of the Vietnamese President to be nationalised or re-nationalised in Vietnam; adopted children and overseas Vietnamese who are naturalised in foreign countries but still want to hold Vietnamese citizenship.

According to the law, overseas Vietnamese who don’t lose their Vietnamese citizenship under Vietnamese law before this law takes effect still have Vietnamese nationality. Within five years of the law going into effect, they have to register with Vietnamese diplomatic agencies where they live to hold Vietnamese nationality.

For non-nationals who have lived in Vietnam for over 20 years by the day this law takes effect and have not violated Vietnamese laws will be allowed to get Vietnamese nationality.

Law on Health Insurance

Applicable to all domestic and foreign individuals and organisations, the law governs eligibility for and outlines the scope of health insurance coverage, health insurance funding, rights and obligations of insurers and insured, and offers a road map for the universalisation of health insurance.

There are 24 groups in the new insurance system. Members of 11 of the groups will enjoy free health-care insurance cards, funded by the state budget. The free health-care group includes children under 6, those who served in the revolution, war veterans, the poor and the elderly.
The ceiling premium level for free health insurance will be 6 percent, but can be adjusted based on a person’s financial situation.

Insurance payers will be split into three groups, based on their financial situations. People can register for insurance services at medical units at communal and district levels. This excludes those who are required to register at provincial and central levels under health ministry regulations.

The law is made-up of 10 chapters and 52 articles.

In actuality, those who enjoy health insurance will receive 100, 95 or 80 percent of health-care expenditures.

From the point-of-view of enterprises, the new law will have a considerable impact, as they will be obligated between now and 2014 to extend health insurance coverage to all employees working under indefinite-term labour contracts or labour contracts with a definite term of three full months or more, as well as enterprise managers receiving wages. An employee’s maternity leave is counted towards any eligibility period.

For employees working under multiple labour contracts, the health insurance premium will be based on the labour contract with the highest wage level. However, in no case will the maximum base wage used to calculate insurance premiums exceed the minimum wage by 20 times.

Under the new law, health insurance participants have the right to receive a health insurance card, choose their initial examination and treatment provider, receive examination and treatment, receive reimbursement for costs of examination and treatment from a health insurance organisation in accordance with the health insurance regime, request and receive information about the health insurance regime, and make claims and denunciations against breaches of the law on health insurance.

Revised Law on Road Transport
The revised Law on Road Transport puts into effect a requirement that all children being carried on motorcycles over the age of six months must wear safety helments. Other provisions will supplement existing road traffic regulations and will clarify the responsibilities of local authorities after traffic accidents occur.

The law will introduce reforms in the following areas: traffic lights, street parking, the age of child passengers on motorcycles, helmet-wearing, street naming and improved safety on national highways.

The law will strengthen licencing regulations and will require drivers to carry cards and documents. Bus drivers and those in the transport business will also be further monitored under the new law.

The law comprises eight chapters and 89 articles. Three articles are taken from the 2001 law, 68 have been revised and supplemented and 18 are new.

Law on Biodiversity and Hi-tech Law
The Bio-diversity Law will set out detailed duties at all levels, from central agencies to grassroots units. It is based on the principle of universal interest in bio-diversity preservation and development. Efforts will go towards wiping out hunger and poverty. The law has 8 chapters and 78 articles.

The Hi-tech Law will regulate state policies on research and development in high-technology fields. The defining of hi-tech products is seen as a key priority for development under the law. The law incorporates solutions to boost applications for research and development in high technology. It is made up of six chapters and 35 articles.

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